DOL Orders Freight Co. To Pay $1M, Reinstate Whistleblowers

Law360, New York (November 14, 2013, 7:56 PM EST) -- The U.S. Department of Labor has ordered Gaines Motor Lines Inc. to reinstate whistleblowers who were fired for participating in a Department of Transportation inspection and to pay more than $1 million in back wages and damages, the agency announced Wednesday.

The DOL's Occupational Safety and Health Administration determined in an order dated Nov. 8 that the company had fired four truck drivers in violation of the whistleblower protection provision of the Surface Transportation Assistance Act, which OSHA is tasked with enforcing.